Infant carrying device



April 26, 1949.

c. w. CLEMENS, JR

INFANT CARRYING DEVICE Fil ed Aug. 9-, 19.45

IN V EN TOR.

Patented Apr. 26, 1949 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

INFANT CARRYING DEVICE Charles W. Clemens, Jr., South Bend, Ind.

Application August 9, 1946, Serial No. 689,342

Claims.

The present invention relates to infant carrying devices and more particularly to a shouldersupported infants seat.

It is an object of the present invention to provid'e'an improved device of this type which can be manufactured at low cost, which affords security for the child, and which may be comfortably worn by the person carrying the child.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a novel device of this character which afior'ds security for the child while permitting the wearers hands to be free.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent from the following description of a preferred embodiment of my invention which is illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a side perspective view of the carrying device of my invention illustrating the general arrangement of the elements;

Fig. 2 is a top view of the article shown in Fig. l excepting that a portion of the strap has been broken away so as better to illustrate the features of the invention;

Fig. 3 is a fractional view of a portion of the seat illustrating the construction and arrangement;

Fig. 4 is a left-hand side view of the device showing the conformation of the left-hand side member; and

Fig. 5 is a right-hand side view similarly illustrating the right-hand side member.

The device of the present invention is formed substantially entirely from canvas with the edges bound to prevent raveling excepting that the seat portion is reinforced with a rectangular piece of plywood or the like.

In general, the article comprises a seat l0 made up of two thicknesses of canvas sewed together along the front edge 12 and side edges I4. At the rear edge the two pieces of canvas are bound separately so as to provide an opening across the width of the seat for the insertion of a rectangular stifiening member, such as a piece of plywood or the like [6. At the left-hand edge of the seat, as seen in Fig. 1, the top canvas strip of the bottom It) extends upwardly to form a side member [8, the rearward edge of which is substantially vertical with respect to the plane of the seat while the forward edge tapers backwardly so that at a point a matter of eight inches or so up from the seat the side member 18 is only approximately two and a half inches in width, thereby forming a strap portion 28. This strap portion has sufficient length to pass over the shoulder of the wearer and downwardly again to the seat where it is adjustably secured by means of a buckle 22 to an upwardly extending side member 24 formed-as an extension of the seat canvas at the right-hand edge of the seat. The side member 24 which extends upwardly a matter of five inches or so is generally rectangular excepting that the front edge extends somewhat forwardly of a position directly above the front edge of the seat. The buckle is secured to the side member 24 at this upper front corner.

From the above it will be seen that the seat portion In has two upwardly extending side members, one at each side, and that the :strap 28 is formed as a continuation of the left side member l8 of reduced Width and aligned with the back edge thereof. It is attached to the right side member 24 of the seat by means of the buckle 22 located 'at the forward edge of the right side member so that the strap extends diagonally of the seat.

In order to support the back of the child being carried and to prevent the child from falling from the rearward edge of the seat a back strap 26 is secured to the right-hand side member 24 near its rearward edge and extends across the back of the seat Hi and has its opposite end secured to the front edge of the side member -'I8. The back member '26 therefore extends somewhat diagonally across the seat and is, I have found, very effective in causing the side member I 8 to lie fiat against the body of the wearer so as to prevent wrinkling of this member during use of the device, thereby promoting the wearers comfort. This is because the child s back pressing against the strap '26 '-will'twist :the side member 18 inwardly at its front edge and outwardly at its rear edge, so that'the side member follows the curvature of the wearers body at'a point somewhat above theleft hip. Because the left side member and strap fit closely against the wearer over a considerable area, the seat is prevented from slipping relative to the wearer during use.

At the forward 'edgeof the seat a front cross strap 28 extends from side to side of the device and is secured to the side members 18 and 24 near their forward edges by detachable snap fasteners 30 and 32, respectively. Also, a center strap 34 is sewed to the cross strap 28zatapp'roximately its central point, as indicated at :36, and extends downwardly 'where it is secured by a third snap fastener 38 .to the lower-surface of the canvas seat H] near the front edge.

To use the device the wearer inserts the left arm through the loop of the strap 20 from front to back and then slips the loop over his head so that the seat is suspended by the strap 2|] from the right shoulder, the strap 20 passing across the chest and back of the wearer. With the device in this position, the length of the strap is adjusted at the buckle 22 until the seat portion I is disposed just above the left hip. The child is then placed upon the seat with his legs straddling the center strap 3d and with his back against the back strap 25. When the device of the present invention is used in this manner, the side members it and 24 together with the back strap 26 and front straps 28 and 34 effectively confine the child so that he cannot slip out or fall from the seat, while at the same time the wearers hands are free for other purposes. The side member i8 will be disposed closely against the body of the wearer and therefore will have no tendency to wrinkle or become uncomfortable.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and useful and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. In an infant carrying device, pliable fabric means forming a seat portion, flat pliable side members secured at their lower edges to the sides of said seat portion, a strap for connecting the top edges of said side members, said seat portion being formed. to provide a pocket therein substantially coextensive with the area of said seat portion, a stiff reinforcing member disposed in said pocket, said strap extending upwardly from the left-hand side member substantially as a continuation of the back edge of said side member in the plane thereof to a point above the said side member and being twisted at said point, means connecting the other end of said strap to the right-hand side member adjacent the forward corner thereof in a position ahead of the forward edge of said seat portion, a front cross member secured at its ends to said side members and extending transversely in front of said seat portion, strip of fabric depending from said cross member at substantially its mid point and extending downwardly and secured at its opposite end to the lower surface of said seat portion in a position adjacent the front edge thereof, and a strip of fabric forming a back member, said strip being attached to the righthand side member adjacent the rear edge thereof and to the left-hand side member adjacent the front edge thereof so that backward stresses on said back member will tend to rotate said left-hand side member in a counterclockwise di rection as seen when looking downwardly to said left-hand side member to fit the curvature of the body of the wearer at approximately the waistline.

2. In an infant carrying device, pliable fabric means forming a seat portion, fiat pliable side members secured at their lower edges to the sides of said seat portion, a strap for connecting the top edges of said side members, said portion being formed to provide a pocket therein substantially coextensive with the area of said seat portion, a stiff reinforcing member disposed in said pocket, said strap extending upwardly from the left-hand side member substantially as a continuation of the back edge of said side member in the .plane thereof to a point above the said side member and being twisted at said point, means connecting the other end of said strap to the right-hand side member adjacent the forward corner thereof in a position ahead of the forward edge of said seat portion, and a strip of fabric forming a back member, said strip being attached to the right-hand side member adjacent the rear edge thereof and to the left-hand side member adjacent the front edge thereof so that backward stresses on said back member will tend to rotate said left-hand side member in a counterclockwise direction as seen when looking downwardly to cause said left-hand side member to fit the curvature of the body of the wearer at approximately the waistline.

3. In an infant carrying device, pliable fabric means forming a seat portion, flat pliable side members secured at their lower edges to the sides of said seat portion, a strap for connecting the top edges of said side members, said seat portion being formed to provide a pocket therein substantially coextensive with the area of said seat portion, a stifi reinforcing member disposed in said pocket, said strap extending upwardly from the left-hand side member substantially as a continuation of the back edge of said side member in the plane thereof to a point above the said side member and being twisted at said point, means connecting the other end of said strap to the right-hand side member adjacent the forward corner thereof in a position ahead of the forward edge of said seat portion, and a strip of fabric forming a back member, said strip being attached to the left-hand side member adjacent the front edge thereof so that backward stresses on said back member will tend to rotate said lefthand side member in a counterclockwise direction as seen when looking downwardly to cause said left-hand side member to fit the curvature of the body of the wearer at approximately the waistline.

4;. In an infant carrying device, pliable fabric means forming a seat portion, flat pliable side members secured at their lower edges to the sides of said seat portion, a strap for connecting the top edges of said side members, said strap extending upwardly from the left-hand sidemember substantially as a continuation of the back edge of said side member and in the plane thereof to a point above the said side member and being twisted at said point, means connecting the other end of said strap to the right-hand side member adjacent the forward corner thereof in a position ahead of the forward edge of said seat portion, and a strip of fabric forming a back member, said strip being attached to the lefthand side member adjacent the front edge thereof so that backward stresses on said back member will tend to rotate said left-hand side member in a counterclockwise direction as seen when looking downwardly to cause said left-hand side member to fit the curvature of the body of the wearer at approximately the waistline.

5. In an infant carrying device, pliable fabric means forming a seat portion, flat pliable side members secured at their lower edges to the sides of said seat portion, a strap connecting the top edges of said side members, said strap extending upwardly from the left-hand side member substantially as a continuation of the back edge of said side member and in the plane thereof to a point above the said side member and being twisted at said point, and a strip of fabric form ing a back member, said strip being attached to the left-hand side member adjacent the front edge thereof so that backward stresses on said back member will tend to rotate said left-hand 5 side member in a. counterclockwise direction as seen when looking downwardly to cause said lefthand side member to fit the curvature of the body of the wearer at approximately the waistline.

CHARLES W. CLEMENS, JR.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,056,925 Kinbrough Oct. 6, 1936 2.411 721 Hancock Nov. 26. 1946 

